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I cannot believe that news made no mention of what these people said to the residents. Once again, the rest of us in the Acreage have no way of finding out what the doctors and experts have to say.

Post reporter Mitra Malek described with great specificity some of the promises made by state and local officials. She also gave a smattering of the emotional questions and stories from residents. Here’s her story.

I was there, too, and took detailed notes. For the record, these were their remarks. Let me know if this information is helpful:

From Dr. Alina Alonso, acting director of the Palm Beach County Health Department:
The state DOH has the data, and now is analyzing it. Results are expected by the end of August, and the CDC will review them. The results will dictate what happens next. If a cluster is found, there will be environmental assessments of air, land and water. It’s possible it could go to a level IV inquiry, which would involve a large-scale university-level study.
Finding a cause is not a given. Sometimes science does not have an answer.

Dr. Melissa Singer, pediatric oncologist:
The causes of childhood cancer are generally unknown. They include radiation, pesticides, solvents, chemicals. Leukemia and brain cancer together make up 50 percent of all childhood cancers. Cancer cure rates in children are 80 percent, thanks to excellent protocols for treatment that are standardized.
Bob Weisman, Palm Beach County Administrator:
If a finding comes back that it is something related to your wells, that is something the county can be of assistance with. We can work with you to extend pipes. Twenty-five years ago the health department predicted that with so many properties so close together, both septic and wells next to each other, there was the potential for big decline in water quality.
A speaker asked that soil at schools be tested. Weisman said the county could do that.Jack Long, Florida Department of Environmental Protection:
On the DEP’s web site, they are now posting a contamination locater map. Just plug in an address and you can see what the agency is working on.

The DEP is now making 2 million documents related to waste management available on its website, too, a system called OCULUS.
Mike Sole at DEP has moved to start sampling the water now. The agency started working on the protocols last Wednesday. Will check for petroleum products, fungicides, pesticides, herbicides. It will take two months to analyze the data.

Acreage resident Diana Demarest asked why the neighbors weren’t notified in 2004 that 250,000 gallons of jet fuel had been spilled after Hurricane Wilma?
DEP’s Jack Long said it was because the spill – 150,000 gallons – did not break out of the liner surrounding the tank.